Tricuspid Valve Endocarditis in an Intravenous Drug Abuser: A Case Report

Article type: Case report Recently, there have been more reports of cardiac valve infections due to the increasing number of intravenous (IV) drug abusers and chronic renal failure patients. Among cardiac valves, tricuspid valve is most commonly affected in the course of endocarditis. Appropriate management of these patients is a challenging and controversial issue in the field of cardiac surgery. Treatment options in such cases include IV antibiotics, surgical excision alone, and surgical excision with the re-implantation of prosthetic valve. In this study, we present a case of tricuspid valve endocarditis (TVE), confirmed by echocardiography, in a young IV drug abuser. Tricuspid valve replacement was performed by using a biological prosthesis with remarkable results in the early and long-term follow-up of the patient. Article history: Received: 15 Jan 2015 Revised: 20 March 2015 Accepted: 30 March 2015